Amdhewb



(No Model.)

M. ARBUGKLB.

WHEEL PAINTING MACHINE.

No. 546,216. Patented Sept. 10, 1895.

Unire ra-rss t .afi-nerr aries.

MATTHEW ARBUCKLE, OF INDIANPOLIS, INDIANA.

wHEEL-PA`iNTlNG MACHINE..

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent 1Y0. 5416,21 6, datedSeptember 10, 1895..

Application filed August 30, 1894. Serial No. 521,764. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MATTHEW ARBUCKLE, of Indianapolis, county of Marion,and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin YVheeLPainting Machines;

' and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, refer.- ence being had to the accompanyingdrawings, in which like numerals refer to like parts.

The object of my wheel-painting machine is to reduce the cost ofpainting carriage and other vehicle wheels. With my machine one personcan paint several wheels while he would be painting one by hand. Thismachine applies and spreads the paint and dries it quickly. My devicecan also be used as a wheel-washing machine by omitting some parts ofthe painting-machine;

The full nature of my invention will ap; pear from the followingdescription and accompanying drawings.

Figure lis aperspective of my wheel-painting machine. Fig. 2 is acentral verticallongitudinal section of the device, excepting thepaint-can and support, which are in elevation. Fig. 3 is a plan viewr ofthe machine. Fig. el. is a vertical cross-section of the upper centralportion of the tank to one side of the brushes. Fig. 5 is the saine viewof the lower central portion of the tank, but on a smaller scale thanFig. d. Fig. 6 is a detail view of a main brush and attachment, being anelevation. Fig. 7 is a perspective of a main brush. Fig. S is acrosssection of a small brush and its attachment. Fig. 9 is a centralvertical longitudinal section of a goed form of the tank whenused forwashing wheels, and Fig. l0 is a detail view of the mud-scraper in thewashing-machine.

I providea tank l, made, preferably, of wood and semicircular, as shown,being wide enough to contain the brushes and receive a wheel. Whendesired,l secure it to the floor by the cleats 2 and provide knobs 3 forhandling it. A portion of the bottom of the tank is built fiat, asshown, that it may sit level and steady.

I mount centrally on the tank means of supporting the wheel, consistingof a vertically 5o movable and adjustable jack 4. on one side and areadily-removable support 5 uponl the other side. The jack 4 and itsmeans of ad justment are similar to that shown in my Letters Patentdated September 4, 1394. The support 5 is made removable in order thatsup ports of varying heights may be used for wheels of varyingdiameters, the support e be ing adjusted to register with it. Thesesupports 5 are made removable also for converting the painting-machineinto awashing-machine when the wheel is on the carriage-axle, as thejack 4 then is suflcient. If the wheel, however, is not on the vehicle,the support 5 is required in the washing-machine.

Two sets of brushes are provided by me, main brushes (3V and small orfelly brushes 7. Two of these, one of each kind, are placed on eachinner side ofthe tank. The main brushes 6 are made in the form,preferably', that is shown in Fig. 'Z-of a wooden L-shaped base S, withgrooves 9 on each side of the inner face thereof. This base is so formedthat it may be slipped in a guideway ,'formed, as shown in Fig. 6, byplacing a pair of guide strips l0, being L-shaped in cross-section,so asto have a flange extending in from the base 8 and tting in the grooves9. These guidestrips are made, preferably, of sheet iron galvanized andnailed to the inner side of the tank, near the middle, so as to registerwith the wheel-supports 4 and Thelong end of the brush-base 8 is placed.in this guideway, the short end extending horizontally outward over thesides of the tank. The fibers of the' main brushes are set to one sideof the center of the base S, as seen in Fig. 6, in order that the endsof fibers may pass each other when the brushes are in place, which isdesirable, that the brushes may overlap the spokes of the Wheel. Thispeculiar position of the fibers, however, is not required on the shortpart of the brush-base. One of these main brushes is fastened by a screwat its upper end to the jack 4t, whereby the two move up or downtogether. The other brush is moved by hand to register with the firstand is held in place by a spring catch or dog ll, which operates througha hole in the cleatto which it is fastened. The short end of this pairof brushes engages the hub, while lthe long end IOD acts on the spokes.The short brushes 7 are to act on the felly and that part of the wheel.It is made, as shown in Fig. 8, plain, and is held in the guideway orsmall brush-holder 12, made like the other guideways, except it has aback 13, which sets the brush out some distance from the tank, wherebyit can engage the felly and can be held rather tightly in place.V Thesebrushes usually need no adjustment, but, if desired, they can be slippedup or down and the tight fit of the brushholder will keep them in place.

At the bottom of the tank I provide means of centering the Wheel in thetank, consisting of what I call centering-strips 414, being a pair ofstrips secured to the side and bottom and inclined toward each other atthe bottom. By this the'tire will not engage the side of the tank andthe Wheel will be kept in a position wherein the brushes will actequally upon it. To remove the contents of the tank quickly, I provide aspring-closed valve 15, covering au exit at the lower part of one sideof the tank. The spring rotates laterally, whereby the valve can quicklybe opened or closed.

Y To feed the paint to the wheel, I provide a suitable stand or support1G for a paint can or tank 17, from which the paint is conveyed bysuitable tubes to the wheel. The stand shown is secured to the door nearthe wheeltank and is secured to the same by the removable connection 18.An iron pipe or tube 19, extending down from the paint-can 17, isfastened to the stand 16 by two brackets 20, one being secured by asetscrew on wheel 2l. The iron paint-tube 19 has a valve 22 at its lowerend, below which it divides and forms a U-shaped tube 23, the U pointingtoward the wheel. From each arm of the U-shaped tube is a rubber tube27, extending parallel with the top of the sides of the tank to theinner end of a laterally-adjustable rod or arm 24:, which is mounted inthe wheel-support on either side and, as shown herein, is operated by asmall hand-wheel 25. The tubes are provided with a series of aperturesor preferably small inwardly-extending tubes 26,

vthrough which the paint flows to the Wheel.

The tubes are moved close to the spokes after the Wheelis put in,whereby the small outlets will to some extent overlap the spokes, andthus deposit paint on them. The inner end of the main tubes depositspaint on the hub. The brushes evenly distribute the paint thusdeposited. To dry the wheel, drying-brushes, like the paint-brushesabove described, are substituted for them, or, preferably, a secondmachine for drying purposes is placed near the first, being` like itexcept the device for supplying the paint. In this manner the paint willbe readily deposited and distributed over the surface of the wheel. Thefibers of the brushes should be soft and long. If they should be shortor stiff, they will often fail to distribute paint properly about theends of the spoke, Where a fea7 touches by a hand-brush would benecessary.

Wvhen my device is used to wash carriages, the paint-supplying part isremoved, as it is readily detachable. If the wheel is on the buggy, theremovable support 5 is taken off; otherwise not. Sometimes it is desiredto scrape mud olf the sides of the felly, as water is slow to penetrateand disintegrate some kinds of dirt. For thisI put a scraper 2S on each{side of the tank,made, preferably, of rubber a fourth of an inch thickand partially split, as shown in Fig. 10. Usually this scraper is notneeded. To increase the pressure of the scraper 0n the wheel, I presslaterally against the tank with my hand. I might add that usually thetank when used to wash Wheels is not secured to the floor, but is placedunder the wheel in the manner described in my former patent abovementioned. Instead of making the tubes 26 and 27 of rubber I sometimesmake them of iron, the tubes 26 being short with a small,preferablyhollow, hair brush secured to them and extending inwardly intocontact with the wheel.

Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, isthe following:

l. A wheel painting machine comprisinga tank, means of supporting thewheel so it will rotate in the tank, brushes removablymounted on thesides of the tank close enough `to the wheel to engage it, a paint canplaced higher, than the tank, and tubes leading from the paint canalongside the parts of the wheel and provided with apertures throughwhich the paint is deposited on the wheel.

2. Inawheelpaintingorwashingmachine,a tank, guideways on the sides ofthe tank, and L-shaped brushes with the long ends fitting in suchguideways and the short ends extend ing laterally outward at the top,the fibers of the brushes being on one side of the center of the longends whereby the ends of the bers will pass each other when the brushesare in place, substantially as shown and described. y

3. In a wheel painting or washing machine, a tank, a set of L.shapedbrushes adjustably mounted on the sides of the tank with their shortends upward and extending outward, and a set of small brushes on thesides of the tank near the bottom and set so as to engage the felly andouter ends of the spokes of the wheel, substantially as show'n anddescribed.

4:. In a wheel painting or washing machine, a tank, an adjustable jackon one side, and a support on the other side whereby the wheel issupported, guideways on the sides of the tank, brushes movable in suchguideways, the brush on one side fastened to the jack, and a catchadapted t0 hold the other brush in any desired elevation, substantiallyas shown and described.

I'IO

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5. In a wheel painting machine, e suitable to the wheel may be adjusted,substantially frame, means for supporting the Wheels on as shown anddescribed. xo Such frame, e paint can placed higher than I Witnesswhereof I have hereunto set my the Wheel hub, tubes leading from Ichepaint hand this 17th day of August, 1894:.

can alongside the Wheel, and laterally adj ust- MATTHEV ARBUCKLE. ablereds mounted on the frame to whose u- Witnesses: nel ends the inner endsof the paint tubes ere V. H. LOOKWOOD,

attached whereby theeicseness of such tubes A. S. COURTRIGHT.

